Baby Neko!
by storygirl1015
Summary: A baby is found just outside Konoha, but there's something strange about her...What happens when Naruto and Sakura find themselves playing parents? Pure chaos of course!
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I've been reading a lot of neko and okami based Naruto stories (although not nearly enough seem to exist, considering what a major role demons play in the Naruto storyline anyway) and its given me a brand new idea! Hopefully, I can follow through with it and it'll turn out nicely and you'll all enjoy reading_ and_ reviewing it as well… Now, without any further ado, please read, review, and enjoy, but not exactly in that order…**

**I don't own Naruto.**

**Summary**: A small baby girl is found one night abandoned just outside the gates of the village. But with a strange seal around her navel, cat ears, and a tail, this baby is anything but normal. Now Naruto and Sakura, requested by the Hokage herself, find themselves playing parents to this cute little bundle of fur...As they continue to take care of the little neko girl and face the trials and tribulations of teenage parenthood, the two old teammates steadily find themselves growing closer and learning more about themselves and each other in the process. But when dangerous enemies threaten the safety of 'their' baby furball, will they be able to protect her? And what mysteries lie within her secret origins that make her so valuable in the first place?

**Chapter One**:

A Bundle of Baby Bliss

* * *

It was a gusty fall night in the land of fire. Stars twinkled overhead, the wind yowled and rattled the tightly bolted house windows, and two shadowy figures crouched out of sight overhead, perfectly camouflaged by the thick, leafy green foliage of the tall evergreen trees the region was famous for, and inky black darkness of the chilly autumn night.

Warily, patiently, they watched the sleepy village lying just below. The only thing to be seen in the dark abyss that gave proof of their presence were the two pairs of glowing cat-like eyes, fixed unblinkingly and unperturbed on the unsuspecting target: The Hidden Leaf Village known as Konoha.

As if on cue, they turned to face each other, sharing a curt nod. They ever so silently and swiftly made their way through the trees, with each branch hopped, they got lower and lower, until, finally, they were close enough to the ground to clearly see the prominent gates of the prestigious ninja village lying just beyond. And with trees no longer blocking their view, they were able to use their excellent cattish eyes to make out two slouched figures leaning against the giant gate posts, their only movements were the rise and fall of their chests that came with the even steady breaths.

Unseen by those below, one shadow musingly tilted its head to the side, "So this is the best protection the infamous Village Hidden in the Leaves could come up with? If those are the sentries than getting past the other security should be a peace of cake."

"Yes, and that's what worries me. How can we be so sure our own little bundle will be properly looked after and protected, hmm?" came the calm, honeysweet reply.

The first one scoffed, "I understand your concerns, kitten, but this is no time to be picky. We've got to drop the little fur ball of somewhere, and this happens to be the closest village for miles around. I'm sure she'll be just fine. Besides, do we really have a choice? You know I don't want to leave our little ball of fluff behind anymore than you do, but with _**them**_ right on our tails we just can't risk getting caught and having them skinning all our hides, now can we? At least now, if something happens to us, our legacies will still live on through our precious little pet."

"Yes, I suppose you're right…" the sweet voice sighed sadly.

"If you want, we can spare a few minutes to stop and say our goodbyes, but then we **absolutely** _**must**_ go. I think we threw them off with that last turn around, but with our scents still lingering in the air and us only managing to stay a paw's length ahead of them, it won't take them long to sniff us out and then they'll be hot on our trail again," the gruff voice said.

In the dark, the companion nodded, but the other was still able to follow her movements with his keen cat-like eyes. "Hmm, right,"

With their brief conversation over, they made the short jump the rest of the way to the ground, both figures landing in a crouched position firmly on their feet. The shorter one stood up first and reached into her cloak, pulling from it a small bundle wrapped tightly in warm, dark green blankets and held firmly in place by a small metal clasp fastened to the side to keep the contents from falling out during travel, or squirming around.

Lifting up the still and quiet bundle so that it was level with what one could assume to be her face, she placed a tender sweet kiss on the tiny creature's forehead, before hugging it gently yet firmly, to her bosom, then handing it over to her taller male counterpart.

Taking the bundle from his somber mate, he also placed a gentle kiss on the tiny thing's forehead and gave the fragile cloth-wrapped creature a strong, yet careful hug, before creeping forward, followed closely by his mate, and placing the bundle at the foot of the giant fortress on the ground.

"Goodbye, my pet. Take care, little one," the woman's sweet voice whispered, tears beginning to form in her beautiful emerald green eyes, causing them to shimmer in an almost ethereal way and making her mysterious, lithe figure all the more secretive, sexy and captivating.

"Be good, kid. We'll always be watching out for you, no matter what happens to us, or where we are... And if we can, we'll return for you one day," the gruff male voice whispered, his own golden brown eyes beginning to well up with barely contained, unshed tears.

The female figure quickly swiped the clear liquid from her eyes and stifled a few sniffles, "Then I guess we should go now…"

"Yes, we must. It's for the best, kitten. You'll see."

"I hope you're right…" she whispered softly as they leapt back into the safety and cover of the massive forest green treetops.

They stopped simultaneously, glancing back down through the thick mass of foliage where their sharp cat-like eyes were just able to make out the tiny speck of a bundle they'd left behind at the village gates, waiting quietly to be discovered whenever someone should happen to pass by and see it lying there, on the cold dirt ground. But, who knew when that would be...

"What say we help them along a bit?" the female asked hopefully.

"Sure, I guess it couldn't hurt right? I mean it is rather cold tonight. Even with those blankets, I'd still prefer she be someplace inside the village boundaries safe, dry and warm," the male agreed. And with that, they joined in giving one loud, ear-piercing yowl that could have shattered glass and awoken the dead, so high and fierce was the great level of sound the two screaming shadows produced.

They watched in shared silence with looks of satisfaction when the two slumbering guards suddenly awoke with looks of surprise, pain and annoyance plastered clearly on their faces.

"Just what the hell is that terrible ear-splitting sound!?" yelled one.

"I don't know, but it sounds like a thousand yodeling wild cats, and the frequency is driving me insane!!" his companion replied.

"I think my ears are bleeding… Let's hurry and find where it's coming from, do a quick patrol of the borders, and then hurry and get back to slee-uh, I mean sentry duty… Yeah, that…" the first screamed above the horrible sounding noise.

His companion nodded, and they both left their post and split up to locate the source of the atrocious racket, not realizing all the while that the source of sound was far out of sight, up above. However, they forgot all about locating the source, when the first guard literally stumbled, over a wrapped little bundle that had been left behind just moments ago.

Stooping down to exam the tiny hazard, the guard discovered it to be a bundle, and out of curiosity, picked it up to further inspect the strange cloth wrapped item. Pulling back the hood of the blankets a bit, he was just able to make out the tiny shape of a head in the dark. Alarmed, he called out to his comrade, "Whoa! Hey, Rishu, come look at this!"

"What, What is it, Oriyo, did you find out what was making that horrible sound?" his companion asked as he came running over.

"No, but I think I found something even more surprising…" Oriyo replied.

"What, what is it!?"

"Here, see for yourself," he said, handing the bundle to his slightly flustered friend.

"I-It's a kid! How'd it get out here!?"

"I don't know, but I think we should go take it to Lady Hokage right away, she'll probably know what to do. Besides, the Hokage's supposed to be the first one to know when something's going on around here,"

"Yeah, you're right. Let's go!" Rishu commanded.

"But wait, we can't both go. One of us has to stay behind and look for more suspicious activity," Oriyo reasoned.

"Then you stay. I'll go take the kid to Hokage-sama." Rishu suggested.

"Well, if you insist… I can't pass you up on that offer. I'm too tired to make the trip all the way to the Hokage tower and back anyway."

"Right, then, it's decided— I'll go and deliver the squirt to the Hokage's tower right away!" and with that, the surprisingly stealthy ninja darted off toward the Hokage tower disappearing over some far off rooftops. His companion wearily watched him go, but unbeknownst to him, he wasn't the only one. For from the treetops, the original delivers watched with solemn stares and lingering frowns.

"Azura, do you think we did the right thing?" the female asked quietly.

For a minute, there was only the still of the darkness and the silence of night, then, came the low and even reply, "It was for the best, Kirako, you and I both know there was no other way. And we can't turn back now. She's gone… We too must go now, we've stayed in one place too long, and now I'm beginning to feel their presence again. It's dim, but they're quickly gaining ground. They will be upon us before we have time to hide again if we don't hurry."

"Then, let us go…"

And as quickly and quietly as they had come, the two mysterious shadow figures were gone…

**Okay the first chapter is now completed. But tell me, how was it? Good, hopefully. As I already mentioned above, it will be a NaruxSaku, but may include other pairings later on, depending on how things go.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed so far:**

**jraywolf**

**uzukun7**

**Phnxfy1**

**dbzgtfan2004**

**You all are my inspiration for this chapter, so I gladly dedicate it to all of you! Thanks so much for all of your help! =D**

**Chapter Two:**

New...Parents?

* * *

The Godaime stared down in shock at the little bundle that had just been placed in her arms. "W-What did you say happened again exactly?" she questioned monotonously, her normally vivid honeysuckle eyes blank and unfocused.

She had initially been sleeping peacefully in her room at the Hokage Tower, like most other citizens of Konoha were in theirs, seeing as it was still barely past the early midnight hour, when she had been awoken by a rather frantic jonin that'd been spouting gibberish about finding something or other wrapped in cloth while on border patrol.

Though the news seemed urgent enough, the Fifth Hokage had still remained half-asleep and very cranky up until the moment the squirming little bundle was placed carefully in her expectantly outstretched hand, the other placed squarely on her hip in annoyance as she glowered at the poor ninja for disturbing her precious slumber. At that second she had snapped awake completely and her undivided attention was placed on the man delivering the startling news.

"I was guarding the gates with my partner when we heard a strange noise and decided to investigate. However, upon arriving at the scene, we found only a small bundle wrapped in cloth lying on the ground near the gates. And as you can see, it turned out to be more than just a discarded bundle of blankets..." he concluded, staring solemnly at the Hokage as she curiously unraveled the blankets a little, and pulled back the hood to reveal the tiny face of a rosy-cheeked, blurry-eyed infant.

But this was not what made the startled woman and wide-eyed jonin gasp and stare in complete shock…It was the sight of two pointed, fuzzy golden ears nestled in a mass of rich auburn baby locks on top of a little head and vivid sea foam eyes with slightly elongated pupils.

As the two adults continued to stare in wide-eyed wonder, the baby gave a soft cute yawn, and they could see two very small, calcified points just beginning to protrude from her gums. They were unusually sharp-looking for mere baby teeth, however, and if she didn't already know any better, the Hokage would've thought they looked more like the fangs of a young kitten rather than the teeth of a human child.

She was brought out of her stupor by a quiet, unsure voice saying, "H-H-Hokage-sama…what d-do you think it is?" The jonin cast hesitant eyes upon his leader, as if hoping she'd know the answer.

"…" There was a noticeable pause for a few moments as Tsunade carefully contemplated what would be the best way to respond.

Finally, she said after some time, her eyes traveling from the sleepy and inquisitive face of the young toddler to the vigilant and expectant one of the fidgety ninja, "To be truthful, I'm not sure. I've never seen anything quite like this in my career as a medic or a ninja although I have heard some old legends from long ago during my travels that might have something to do with it…I'll have to do some extensive research. In the meantime, return to your post and carry out the remainder of your shift as planned. You've fulfilled your duty to see that she arrived here safely, and I thank you for your attentiveness. I'll handle things from here," she concluded firmly.

The ninja quickly bowed before the village leader and mumbled one last farewell before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. Once he was gone, Tsunade stared down at the innocent face of the apparently orphaned child and couldn't help but smile a little.

The baby was actually quite cute. But there was still the matter of what to do about the situation…Her expression changed to a small frown and a heavy sigh escaped her full lips, "Well, I'll sleep on it and figure out what I want to do next in the morning."

Curious teal orbs blinked, giving the Godaime the same innocent look as she made a quiet gurgling noise. Tsunade carried the small child back to her room and quietly closed the door, before settling them both in for the night.

The next morning, Shizune woke up bright and early, fully refreshed and ready to start the day. She climbed out of bed and rearranged the sheets back into their orderly fashion, gently picking up TonTon and placing the small sow back in her basket on the floor beside the corner of the bed. Sometimes, the little pig would crawl into the medic's bed during the night and snuggle into the comforting warmth sleeping next to her human companion provided.

After heading down the hall for a quick shower, and then returning to her room to finish dressing, she exited her room once again to go and find her mentor.

She arrived at the Hokage's bedroom door and slowly raised her knuckles to knock on the piece of wood, when it suddenly swung open with a loud bang, causing the startled medic to jump back in surprise as she stared with wide eyes at her seemingly agitated mistress. She began to carefully appraise the older woman with concerned eyes.

Her normally shiny blonde hair was unusually dull looking and disheveled, her bright, confident eyes looked droopy and tired from lack of proper sleep, the corners of her mouth sagged in a sleepy frown and her fine cheekbones seemed sunken in.

Somehow, the Hokage appeared…older and… frailer than before, and it greatly worried her assistant. It was like she'd aged twenty years overnight, or rather, like her true age had finally caught up with her. "Tsu-Tsunade-sama…! Wh-What happened to you? Y-Y-You look terrible! Are you feeling alright?" In her panic over the other woman, Shizune had still yet to notice the wiggling bundle clutched firmly against her mistress's large bosom.

Tsunade slowly lifted her honey brown eyes to meet the panicked ones of her assistant, and a wry smile formed on her lips, followed by a low, sinister chuckle, "Heh, I've definitely felt better."

At this point Shizune was thoroughly disturbed by the dark look in her mistress's eyes and the creepy smile that seemed to be frozen in place, not to mention the chillingly calm tone of her voice. She knew first-hand from years of traveling together that Tsunade was by no means, a morning person. Still, she found her behavior to be odd and discomforting. "I-I'm sorry to h-hear that…um…i-is there anything I c-c-can do to help," Shizune offered shakily in light of her master's wild and often unpredictable tempers.

"Hmm…well, since you mentioned it…there_ is_ one thing you could definitely do for me," the Hokage trailed off coyly.

"W-What's that…M-my Lady…?"

"For starters...DO SOMETHING WITH THIS LITTLE BRAT!" And there it was— the heated outburst she'd been anxiously waiting for…But what was that she'd said about 'little brat'…?

Shizune soon got her answer however, when the acute sound of a baby crying filled the room, and Tsunade's tired face crinkled up in further annoyance, "I don't know what to do! I tried feeding you, changing you, and burping you…who knew child care could be this troublesome?" she sighed in frustration.

Shizune continued to stare in awe before finally mustering up the courage to speak, "Tsu-Tsunade-sama…w-who…what is…"

"This," Tsunade hissed, looking up at her assistant with darkened half-lidded eyes. "Is the main cause of my lack of sleep last night, and currently, the biggest PAIN I've ever had to deal with! And that includes all those years of putting up with that idiot Jiraiya!"

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere at a hot spring resort near a peaceful mountaintop, a certain white-haired shinobi was currently doing his early morning 'research' when he felt a sudden sneeze coming on, and tried to hold it back without dropping his telescope. Unfortunately, there was no such luck for the toad sanin, and the whole mountainside seemed to shake with the volume of the earth-shattering force.

"AH-AAA-AACHOOOO! …whew," he sniffed. "Why do I get the feeling Tsunade's been talking about me again…" the sanin shrugged it off as his own paranoia, and was just about to readjust the lens of his telescope, when he sensed a strong, very chilling feeling of bloodlust in the air.

He slowly turned around to see five women wrapped in nothing but towels standing right behind him. Loose strands of hair clung to their faces, and water dripped from their wet skin; their wetness also caused the short towels they wore to cling to their bodies, and the sanin couldn't help but notice how full and curvy their figures were.

The one standing in front that seemed to be the leader of the group glared at him, and if it weren't for the precarious situation he now found himself in, Jiraiya thought he probably would've already shit his pants. Unlike the others, she wore chest bindings to hold in her large bosom and a towel around her waist like a skirt, showing her luxurious legs. Her wet raven hair was held up in a messy bun, and water dripped down her milky skin sensuously. It was hard enough to hold back the nosebleed he felt coming on as it was.

"Well, well, well…looks like we've got ourselves a peeping tom, ladies." she said, smiling sweetly, though it was somehow very disturbing. "You know what we do to perverts like you around here?" she continued while cracking her knuckles loudly, the same sickeningly sweet smile still frozen in place.

The poor sanin shook his head slowly, trying to hide the lecherous grin curling its way across his lips in a moment of seriousness. "Uh, ladies, let's be reasonable and talk about this…I was only trying to find the source of inspiration I needed to fill the manuscript of my next novel," the toad sage said in a negotiating tone, gesturing to them with his hands and chuckling nervously.

The women looked at him with skeptically raised eyebrows, and Jiraiya took this as his sign to continue. "I'm an author, you see— a novelist actually— perhaps you've heard of my work—the Icha Icha series?" he went on to pull a copy of the infamous orange book out of his robes, and holding it up for the group of women to see.

"See? I write these, and the only way I can assure my readers satisfaction is by using the best quality subjects I can find. I only happened to stumble upon this bath of five voluptuous beauties by mistake, but I thought, it'd be a waste not to take advantage of such a momentous opportunity," He looked up to see their reactions, and grinned widely when he noticed all five women looked totally flabbergasted. The fact that they seemed dazed and not angry was a good sign… right? Oh Jiraiya, you poor, perverted fool…if only you knew…

As the four women continued to gape, the leader, who happened to be a kunoichi from the Village Hidden in the Sand named Azuri Umeda who'd stopped to rest at the onsen on her way back from a mission to the Rice Country, felt her blood begin to boil, and a thick vein above her right eye started to twitch sporadically in obvious aggravation. Her knuckles turned even whiter as she clenched them tightly, raising one up into a trembling fist and pointing the other accusingly at the perverted hermit.

"Y-_You_? _You're_ the one who writes those…those disgusting books that make women seem like sleazy grab-and go pleasure providers?" she screeched. Sure, she could tell from the start that this guy was a veteran peeping tom without an ounce of shame, but to think he was Jiraiya, one of Konoha's three legendary sanin and _the_ notorious pervert among the perverted was just too much.

"_**Ohoho**_! So you _have_ heard of me, eh? It's not too often I get any _female _fans!" Jiraiya exclaimed, oblivious to the woman's utter outrage and instead pulling out a pen. "I usually don't do this outside my book signing weekends in the village, but I'll tell you what, in order to record this fated meeting, I'll personally autograph you a copy; now how's that sound?"

Azuri's face became a deep and violent shade of red as her anger grew, "…You have until the count of five to start running; then I'm going to hunt you down, castrate and skin you alive, and hang your head over my fireplace like a trophy," she growled in a low, deadly voice.

The sanin swallowed hard, and immediately reached into his robes again, muttering, "I knew I'd need this in a tight spot…" before throwing down a smoke bomb that caused the five women to start coughing and completely obscured the white-haired sage from view.

When they could see again, he was gone, and there was a little white slip of paper on the ground with writing on it. One of the other girls, a blond with big, innocent lime green eyes and a round, baby face that happened to be the youngest in the group of kunoichi at the age of nineteen, stepped forward to pick it up and began to read aloud.

" _'I'm sorry to have left you so suddenly, but I'm afraid I have other business to attend to elsewhere. But know that I'll be back to admire you luscious ladies again later. Signed, Your Personal Peeper— Jiraiya, the Toad Sanin.'_ "

Azuri walked over and took the note from the girl's hands, glaring down at it as if she wanted to incinerate it with her eyes before crumbling it up in her fist and blowing out a small amount of fire to do just that, watching the ashes swirl in the wind with satisfaction before turning back towards the group of other kunoichi with a sinister glint in her eyes.

The young blond, whose name was Tomako blinked, looking back up at the older kunoichi expectantly. "Um…does this mean that creepy old guy's gonna be watching us whenever we bathe from now on?" she asked, shivering slightly at the thought.

"No. Because we're going to hunt him down and put an end to his peeping days once and for all," she declared fiercely. Identically sinister smirks slowly curled their way onto the other four's faces as well and they nodded in understanding. Azuri, who had officially become the leader of the operation by offering up the idea, gestured for them to come closer, and they huddled up into a tight circle as she whispered sternly. "Ok, ladies, now here's the plan…"

* * *

Back in the Hidden Leaf Village, Shizune gulped quietly, taking a shaky breath before saying, "Um…Lady Tsunade…if you want, I could…" she stopped to breathe again, not sure what she was about to say might lead to, but before she could finish, Tsunade hurriedly placed the tiny infant in her hands without any further hesitation.

"Here," she muttered crossly, "Maybe you'll have better luck than I did…just see to it that _it _is taken care of until I can think of something else…" She started to walk away, not bothering to explain about the baby's odd appearance.

Shizune stared after her blankly for a minute, before looking down at the baby, her eyes widening considerably as she noticed the baby's ears, whisker marks, and wide, innocent orbs, gaping openly for several minutes before regaining her senses fully. '_W-What's this? These ears…the whisker marks…what kind of child _**is**_ this…? And why has Tsunade-sama mentioned nothing about it?'_

She began to panic, pacing the room as she so often did in these situations. "What am I going to do? I don't know anything about raising babies…I mean I did work in the maternity ward a few times but I've never actually had to raise one at this stage and—Oooh…Lady Tsunade, what have you done _this _time?" she moaned miserably.

Somehow, it seemed that whenever the Hokage made a mess of things, it was always her poor, ever faithful assistant who had to clean it up. And Shizune got the feeling that this time would be no different.

"I know," she exclaimed suddenly, being struck by a bright idea, "Maybe I can find something in the Hokage's study room that'll help shed some light on the situation!" she hurried down the hall to the giant personal library only accessible to the Hokage and the select few trusted with the village's most carefully guarded secrets.

For the Hokage library held not only important documents dating as far back as Konoha's founding, but also classified top-secret information of various historical accounts that occurred throughout the history of the shinobi nations, things like spy intelligence strategies gathered during wartimes, peace treaties, national regulations, and even some of the past Hokage's personal logs on things they experienced throughout their lifetimes and signature jutsu they discovered or invented.

But before she had made it all the way there, she heard whimpering, and by the time she stopped to see what was wrong, the infant had burst forth with a series of high-pitched wails loud enough to make the dead want to cover their ears.

"Wh-what's wrong? Why are you crying?" she asked frantically, staring down at the baby with fearful eyes. "Uh…I know, it's almost lunch time…and Lady Tsunade said you wouldn't eat this morning. Maybe you're hungry now. I'll see if I can find anything suitable for a baby to eat."

She turned around, heading toward the walk-in pantry where all the Hokage's food supplies were kept. She flicked on the light and looked around; the room was huge, at least twice the size of a normal full-sized kitchen space.

Moving swiftly as the loud wailing persisted, cooing soft words in an effort to soothe the disgruntled child as she went she managed to find several cans of chopped vegetables, and one of peach applesauce.

She wasn't really sure if it was the best thing to feed an infant, but since it was all they had on hand it would have to do. With the child still clutched tightly to her chest she emptied several of the small cans into the blender and turned it on puree. When it was done, she dumped the food, now nothing but mush, into a bowl and grabbed a small spoon, propping the child up in the middle of the counter.

"Open wide, here comes the choo-choo," she cooed, raising the spoon of strained carrots up to the tiny girl's mouth. Curiously, she watched the spoon with wide eyes before opening her mouth to be fed.

Shizune beamed widely, "That's a good gi—" she stopped as the infant's tiny face scrunched up into what could only be described as disgust, and she spit the mashed vegetables back out, right into the poor assistant's face.

"Teehe!" Seeing her current caretaker's face splattered with food was rather amusing to the infant, and she giggled cutely, clapping her hands in glee.

"Okay…" Shizune began slowly, wiping her face off with a nearby rag, "let's try this again, shall we?" And so she did, only for it to have the same results. One spoonful after another was spat back out into the dark-haired woman's face, until the bowl was empty, the countertop was a mess and her patience had almost reached its limits.

She scooped up the baby once again, not even bothering to wipe the rest of the orange mush from her face as she made her way out of the kitchen and down the hall to the Hokage's office. When she got there, she was so overwhelmed she didn't bother to even knock as she kicked the door open since her hands were full of baby, only to find the Hokage slouched over on her desk, snoring softly, a stack of unfinished paperwork and a half-empty bottle of sake beside her.

Her eye twitched in annoyance as she stalked toward the sleeping Hokage, shifting the baby over in her arms as she sucked in a large breath and yelled, "Wake up, Lady Tsunade!"

The Hokage was jolted awake with a start, drool leaking from the corner of her mouth as she gazed around frantically, before her honey brown eyes finally landed on her agitated assistant, standing there with one hand on her hip and the other clutching the child, who was holding onto her robe and glancing down at the blond woman curiously.

"Oh Shizune, it's just you…" she muttered, massaging her forehead. "Did you find a way to take care of that…little problem like I asked you?"

The assistant could feel her face heating up in indignation as she struggled to control the outburst that threatened to escape her mouth. "Lady Tsunade…don't you think it'd be best if you looked for some kind of _solution_ instead of getting drunk and falling asleep?" she bit out in exasperation.

Tsunade made a face between a scowl and a pout. "Hmph… easy for _you_ to say, but I didn't get any sleep last night, thanks to that…_brat_," she motioned one hand toward the bright-eyed little girl, who only blinked slowly at her, the tiny cat ears on top of her head twitching.

"Yes…about that…haven't you noticed anything _strange _about her? I mean, aside from the fact that she's obviously a lot more energetic than most babies at this age?" her assistant pressed.

"Hmm…" the Hokage placed a hand on her chin thoughtfully, her eyes narrowing in concentration. "Well, now that you mention it…she screams a lot, too."

Shizune sweatdropped, shaking her head slightly with a sigh. "No, Lady Tsunade, I meant she's got whisker marks, cat ears and a _tail_. Don't you think that's _abnormal_?"

"Well, yes," Tsunade replied, "but what am I supposed to do? I've never seen anything like it before…though I did hear rumors about something like this a while back…"

The dark-haired kunoichi frowned. "So…what should we do? You're busy enough now trying to catch up on all this paperwork as it is, and I've got my own medical duties at the hospital to see to. Neither one of us really has the time to take care of an infant… " Shizune said slowly, staring blankly ahead as if in thought.

The Hokage studied the child in her assistant's arms a minute longer before declaring, "I agree, we'll have to find someone to watch her for the time being; get me Naruto and Sakura immediately, tell them it's an emergency." she barked.

"Y-Yes Lady Tsunade!" her assistant replied, knowing better than to contradict the Hokage when she used that serious tone of voice. She rushed off, baby still in arms, to send out the message.

Meanwhile, in another part of Konoha, a certain blond shinobi was currently partaking in one of his favorite past-times…eating ramen down at the Ichiraku noodle shop with his teammate and favorite pink-haired medic.

"Thanks for coming to lunch with me today, Sakura-chan! Food always tastes better when you eat it with someone you like," he said after swallowing a large mouthful of noodles.

The kunoichi beside him simply smiled, giggling. "You're welcome, Naruto. Just don't eat too fast, or you'll give yourself indigestion again." she reminded lightly.

At this, Naruto turned away, pouting, his arms crossed over his chest stubbornly. "Bah! It wasn't the ramen that did it, Sakura-chan! I just drank some bad milk that time. Ramen could never make me sick, no matter how much I eat!" the blond ninja declared adamantly. Sakura sighed, shaking her head before taking a small sip of her drink and continuing to pick at her ramen.

The truth was she wasn't really all that hungry, but Naruto had insisted upon her joining him for lunch, since they hadn't had the chance to eat together in several weeks with him being busy training constantly and her still apprenticing under Tsunade at the hospital. So of course when Naruto gave her the big, puppy-eyed stare, she couldn't rightfully turn him down.

She turned toward her teammate and smiled fondly when she noticed him devouring the hot noodles without a care in the world. It reminded her of the old days when team seven would come and share a leisurely meal together after a successful mission, or sometimes after long training sessions.

Now, though, things were different. Kakashi had returned to doing intelligence gathering and work in the fields while his two former students continued their training under the legendary sanin, and it seemed the Copycat nin hardly ever stuck around for very long anymore, let alone found time to sit and eat with them.

Sasuke, too, was still missing; last seen somewhere near the borders of Rice Country with his team of personally-assembled mercenaries, still in hot pursuit of his older brother.

Thus, the amusing antics of the hyperactive, blonde-haired shinobi were one of the few familiar things she had left to hold on to. He was like a bright beacon of hope, the burning torch in the middle of the storm that kept her going.

Whenever she felt weak, whenever she felt like giving up or in need of comfort, she knew she could count on the exuberant grin and fire-driven spirit to be the steadfast rock of strength she leaned on for support. The amount of devotion he had for his comrades and his willingness to lend of himself emotionally, physically, and mentally shone through to inspire hope and passion in the hearts of those around him.

Sakura knew she would be forever grateful to the blond ninja for showing her what it meant to have someone she could always rely on, and that as long as she lived, there'd never be words to express her gratitude, or a payment large enough to equal the debt she now realized she owed to him.

It was at this moment that a small white slug with a blue stripe that looked like a mini replica of the Hokage's personal summon, Katsuya, suddenly appeared, interrupting her moment of reverie. Naruto seemed not to notice the slimy creature as he continued to slurp down his ramen with vigor, but Sakura had no choice but to acknowledge its presence…since it has appeared right in the middle of her bowl of miso, causing an aggravated twitch to appear under her eye.

Sensing that it had somehow offended her, the invertebrate gave a polite bow, or as close to bowing as it could possibly get, before speaking in a shy, squeaky voice barely above a whisper, "Sakura-san, the Hokage requests your presence in her office at once. Please bring Naruto-san also,"

The young woman sighed, her eyes now rolled upwards, where they remained briefly, before returning to the small animal in front of her. "Alright, I'm coming right now. Thank you," she returned just as politely, making sure not to let any of her annoyance leak out into her tone, as not to scare the already nervous slug.

The slug squeaked a small "hai" signifying that she'd heard before poofing off, and Sakura turned toward Naruto, one hand resting on her cheek as she took in the sight of the blond loudly and messily inhaling the steaming food.

"Naruto…" she started, sighing.

"Mm?" He turned to her, ramen still hanging from his lips and chopsticks poised at the ready above his bowl.

"We've been summoned. We have to go to the Hokage Tower,"

"Awaaf…" he seemed to whine, his cheeks still bulging with food. "Mwoww…?"

"Yes, now," the pink-haired medic replied calmly, taking out the tab necessary to pay for their meal before grabbing the blond shinobi by the arm and dragging him off. He gave one last woeful look at his unfinished bowl of half-eaten noodles, before resigning himself with a humble bow of his head, allowing himself to be dragged along for the rest of the trip to the tower.

The Hokage's dark-haired assistant came rushing back into the blonde's office, looking decidedly jaded as she stooped over slightly, still holding the infant clutched to her chest with one arm, her other hand placed on her knees.

She had cleaned herself and the baby off, managing to wrap the child in a light blue cloth which she'd hastily cut and fashioned into a kimono small enough for a baby to wear. With her cat ears, sparkling turquoise eyes, and round little face, she looked quite adorable. The Hokage looked at her assistant expectantly, anxiously awaiting the report.

"Ah, Shizune, you're just in time…" she said, nodding.

"H-Hai…Naruto-kun and Sakura-san should be here any—" she panted out, before being interrupted.

Suddenly, a loud cry of "Tsunade-baachan!" was heard before the door was flung open and Naruto came bursting in, followed of course, by a very aggravated pink-haired medic.

"Naruto, pipe down! You can't yell in the Hokage's office like that!" she scolded, swatting him over the head.

"Aww…Sakura-chan…" he whined, rubbing the sore spot on his head.

"_Ahem_," Tsunade cleared her throat pointedly, disrupting their childish behavior. "Sakura, Naruto, I've called you both here for a very important reason," she began, motioning for Shizune, still carrying the cloth-wrapped bundle, to come closer. She did, and when the Hokage stood up to receive the infant, passed it over to her carefully.

Sakura and Naruto peered intently at the slightly squirming bundle in Tsunade's arms, their brows furrowing up in confusion. "Hey, what's that?" Naruto asked curiously tentatively stepping towards the blond woman's desk.

"This," the Hokage said, drawing back the hood of the blanket to reveal the inquisitive face and fuzzy little ears of the baby, "is your newest mission."

The room was silent after this announcement, save for the quiet sounds of the baby neko cooing softly. Time seemed to stand still for Naruto and Sakura as they stared incredulously at the Hokage and the small child, until, finally, the pink-haired kunoichi broke the silence. "T-Tsunade-sensei…what are we…how could we possibly…I mean, it's uh…a _baby_?" she rambled, trying to form an intelligible sentence.

"Yes, Sakura, it is in fact a baby. She was found outside the village late last night by one of the shinobi on border patrol. As of right now, there's no telling where she came from, who her family is, if any, or what the reason behind the other abnormalities are." she shifted the babe higher on her bosom, while gesturing towards the light, cream-colored ears atop her head.

As if noticing this for the first time, Naruto stepped forward in shock, wide blue eyes staring straight at the small appendages standing erect among the soft down of hair on the baby's head.

He looked at them for some time, unblinking, before finally reaching out a hand to gently graze his thumb and forefinger across the infant's sensitive ears, earning him a pixie-like giggle. Naruto, despite his previous befuddlement, couldn't help but grin at this and, found himself rubbing the velvety kitten-like ears even more, causing more short, sweet giggles to escape the baby's mouth as a result.

He looked back up at the blond woman before him. "Are…are these really…"

She nodded, understanding exactly the kind of question he was trying to convey, "Yes. I'm not sure how, but they are. She's also has whisker marks, similar to your own, and a fully developed tail,"

"So then…does that mean that she's…a…"

"I'm not sure yet. The last I checked, all jinchuuriki were accounted for, with you and Gaara being the youngest. Of course, you're the only jinchuuriki residing in the Hidden Leaf Village, so it's possible there maybe others who are younger that I am unaware of."

Sakura stepped forward at the sound of the child's laughter, and also to get a closer look at the little girl. "Aww…she's so cute," she gushed at seeing the infant's rosy-cheeked face. Cooing at the baby and tickling her tiny button nose with a forefinger, she felt herself melting to the sweet temptation induced simply from looking into her eyes.

Smiling wordlessly, the Hokage shifted the girl into her young apprentice's arms, watching as the two continued to interact with her and marveling at how well they all seemed to fit together. "Anyway, you two are the only ones I can trust with this assignment. Naruto, you are most likely to sympathize with her condition and make sure no harm comes to her, and Sakura can help keep you in check if she needs to."

"W-Whaaat? But Tsunade-sensei...you don't mean? I mean, she's cute and all, but..._us_?" Sakura replied, clearly baffled.

"Yes, you Sakura." her mentor replied firmly. "I should mention that this mission is mandatory, and reflects your ability to adapt to change as a ninja."

"I...understand." the younger kunoichi sulked.

Naruto on the other hand only scratched his head sheepishly, "Hehe...sure, I guess we could take care of a kid for a while. I mean, how hard could it be?"

* * *

**PLEASE ACCEPT MY HUMBLEST AND MOST SINCERE APOLOGY! (XD I sound like Ritsu from Fruits Basket…) When I started working on this chapter, I had fully intended to have it up within a week of the first one, but then I got side-tracked with so many of my other projects and well, you guys all know how it is right? So anyway, sorry for any inconvenience I might've caused you (although so far not many people have reviewed this story…which makes me sad…hopefully that'll change after this chapter goes up, though). Please, please review (it gives my life meaning…(lol) a little overdramatic, but seriously; leave a review)! **

**P.S. And as I've already mentioned, I originally did not plan to include Jiraiya in this chapter, or at any point in particular during the course of this story. But I guess he somehow just snuck his way in anyway. (lol) so I hope you enjoyed his little 'hot spring adventure' as much as I enjoyed writing it! XD it's always good to have a few laughs at the character's expense, right? **


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, I didn't expect for this story to get so popular so fast, but I'm happy everyone seems to be enjoying it. **

**Jiraiya: It was all thanks to **_**my **_**irresistible charm and charisma! Hohohoho!**

**Naruto: *sweat drops* **_**Yeah right**_**, Pervy Sage...**

**Waaaah!**

**Sakura: Now look what you've done, Jiraiya-sama! Thanks a lot, you woke up the baby! Why I ought to... *clenches fists***

**Jiraiya: Hehehe...Well, would you look at the time! Gotta run!**

_**Anyway**_**...**

**And don't worry I promise to make this as funny and fluffy as possible, with the emphasis on funny. Naruto and Sakura's trip through 'parenthood' will be a far from easy one.**

**Naruto and Sakura: HEY!**

**Mwahaha! I know, I'm evil. *smiles innocently* Now on with the story!**

**Chapter Three:**

Awkwardness Abound!

* * *

The two teammates walked side by side through the village streets, new "mission" now in tow. They had just left the Hokage tower and Naruto was as ready as ever for their latest assignment.

He hadn't understood why Tsunade had looked so morbid when she'd handed them the baby, though. She looked like she was giving them some kind of death sentence or something.

Naruto glanced over to his pink-haired teammate, who was preoccupied with the bundle in her arms and cooing at it. Luckily, the Hokage had been able to perform some kind of henge that would temporarily seal the strange ears, tail, and whiskers away so as not to arouse any suspicion.

Right now, she looked like a perfectly normal baby, with the exception of the cat-like eyes and abnormally sharp teeth. "Hey Sakura-chan, what do you think we should do now?" Naruto asked, folding his arms behind his head casually.

The pink-haired medic looked up, blinking in thought as she hefted the baby higher up in her arms. "Well the first thing we probably need to do, is go shopping for everything we'll need while we're taking care of her. Tsunade-sama gave you enough money to cover everything, didn't she?"

Naruto nodded, checking his jacket pocket and pulling out a plain white envelope that contained enough money for whatever baby supplies they could possibly need. "Here it is! Uh...now let's see...baby's need...diapers, bottles and milk, right?" the blond scratched his head in thought.

He didn't know very much about child-rearing, but how hard could it be if so many people in the world had kids?

Sakura tilted her head, a small frown on her face as she shifted the cooing baby into one arm. "That's not all," she replied, holding up a finger as if she were giving a lecture. "Don't forget all the other things like toys, clothes, a crib, bath supplies, blankets, shoes, a changing ta—"

Naruto felt his head spinning as the pink-haired kunoichi continued to list off every baby necessity she could think of. "Whoa, whoa, slow-down Sakura-chan! That's a long list!"

She sighed, shaking her head slightly. "Well, you're the one that said it would be easy." Narrowing her green eyes in concentration, she searched the streets for just the right store. "Now, let's see where we should head first..."

She finally spotted a large store to their right called "Baby Bliss", a well-known and high-class store that sold the most fashionable and latest baby products around.

She gave a small smirk, '_Bingo_.'

She grabbed Naruto's wrist, still holding the infant in one arm. "Come on Naruto. Let's stop here first," she told him, pulling him toward the store without waiting for a response.

"Eh? W-Wha...Sakura-chan, slow down!"

-XOXO-

The unlikely couple had just stepped into the store, and immediately looked around with wide eyes, gaping in shock. Not only was it huge, but filled with everything baby-related you could possibly imagine. Not to mention the many contented looking shoppers, happily scanning the aisles for whatever it was they needed.

"Wow..." Naruto finally breathed out.

"Yeah," Sakura agreed quietly.

Truth be told, there was so much that they almost didn't know where to start, and it was a little intimidating. Just then, as if sent by some miracle, a cheerful looking employee walked over to greet them.

Her long brown hair was held up in a high ponytail and she wore khaki Capri pants and a navy shirt under an apron with the company's logo—a sleeping baby wrapped in a blanket and being carried in the mouth of a stork—printed on it, along with a name tag that read "Yume".

"Hello, welcome to Baby Bliss!" she gave them one of her perfect sales-employee smiles. "What can I help you with today?"

Sakura smiled somewhat nervously, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed for some reason. But why would that be? She was only shopping for baby supplies with Naruto. Oh...right.

Said blond scratched the back of his head, a sheepish grin plastered on his tanned face. "Uh, yeah...where are your baby bottles and stuff?" he asked. Yume turned her attention to the blond-haired Jinchuuriki, and Sakura felt her left eye twitch slightly as she noticed the girl's smile seem to go from friendly to flirtatious.

"Oh, it's down that aisle to the left, right near that sign that says 'toys, bottles, and more'." She said, pointing. "Want me to show you where it is?" she fluttered her long *coughfakecough* eyelashes seductively.

Naruto cringed slightly, feeling his pink-haired teammate's aura turn slightly dangerous. "Erm...thanks, but that's okay. I think I got it!" he said quickly, rushing off in the direction she had pointed.

Sakura watched him go, inwardly fuming. '_How dare that...that __**skank**__ flirt with Naruto right in front of me like that!_' she thought angrily.

Then, realizing what she'd been thinking, she mentally smacked herself, shaking her head to rid it off such intrusive thoughts. '_What's wrong with me? I mean sure, Naruto _has _gotten pretty handsome in the last few years, but it's not like I own him or anything. Why should I care of some bimbo tries to flirt with him?_' she silently scolded herself.

"-miss...? Hello?" she was snapped out of her thoughts as she looked up to see the brown-haired girl staring at her skeptically, one eyebrow raised in question. "Did you need any help?" she asked again, though somewhat less enthusiastically than before.

Sakura tried to ignore the change in attitude, and instead forced a sweet smile. She'd had a great deal of practice from being around Sai so often. And it was almost a little frightening how well she was able to pull it off.

"No, no. I'm fine, thank-you though." She faked a short laugh for good measure before walking off in the opposite direction Naruto had gone.

She gave a brief glance behind her once she was a safe enough distance away, still somewhat irritated by the employee's flirty behavior toward her blond-haired friend and teammate. '_Skank..._' she thought, placing the little infant in a shopping cart and entering the clothing section.

The little girl cooed, blowing spit bubbles and giggling as they popped, oblivious to her new guardian's agitated mood.

-XOXO-

Meanwhile, Naruto sighed with relief after seeing the brunette girl and pink-haired kunoichi were no longer in sight. He had started to feel somewhat awkward, noticing how the atmosphere had taken a sharp turn when the salesgirl had started flirting with him.

Not that he had any interest in her or anything. Even now, at eighteen-years old, he still only had eyes for Sakura no matter how much he tried to deny it by claiming he accepted their relationship as 'just friends'.

But the question was why had Sakura gotten so upset? Usually she only got that way when some random pervert tried to hit on her, or Sai made a cheeky comment about her forehead or called her "ugly". It couldn't be that Sakura had been _jealous_.

The very thought was almost enough to make him choke on his own spit. As if, Sakura only saw him as a friend and she'd have no reason to be jealous anyway, since it was obvious she was the only girl that really mattered to him. He regarded her as not only the girl of his dreams, but also his best-friend, and would readily do anything if he thought it would make her happy.

'_I just hope she's not mad at me now..._' he thought nervously as he scanned the shelves, looking at all the different types of toys, bottles, and various other baby accessories.

He had just picked up a plastic bottle with a pink rubber top and pictures of chibi animals on the side, when a familiar voice called out to him.

"N-Naruto-kun...?" he half turned, meeting eyes with a familiar indigo-haired girl holding a blanket and several toys in her arms, who stared back at him with wide-eyes that clearly showed her current shock.

"Huh? Hinata...? What are you doing here?" the blond asked curiously, studying the timid Hyuga with just as much surprise. Running into anyone from the Rook Nine had never even occurred to him until this moment.

The pale-eyed heiress felt her face growing warm suddenly as she stared at her longtime not-so-secret crush. Imagine running into Naruto in a baby store of all places! Talk about embarrassing...

"W-Well you see, I was just...g-getting some things for K-Kurenai-sensei's baby shower. You know, since she just had twins a few months ago and all... a-and since she decided to have the baby shower after the wedding," the Hyuga stammered, trying hard not to fidget as she made direct eye contact with the Kyuubi vessel.

Naruto blinked slowly, before the information hit and a foxy grin settled onto his face. "Oh yeah, that's right! **(1.)** She had twins with Asuma-sensei, didn't she? So how're they doing anyway? I haven't seen them in awhile, they must be getting big by now..." he rubbed the back of his spiky blond head with one hand.

Hinata swallowed quietly, nodding her head slightly. "Y-Yes, Rei-chan and Shin-kun a-are b-both doing fine. T-they're s-seven m-months old now, and t-they're both a handful," she smiled shyly.

Naruto beamed at her and she flushed even more. "That's awesome, Hinata-chan. Kurenai-sensei must be pretty lucky to have you around to help out, since I know Kiba probably isn't much help." He scowled as he thought of the cocky Inuzuka boy.

"W-Well Kiba-kun's b-been r-really busy t-training with Shino-kun for the J-Jounin exams...s-so they r-really d-don't have much spare time lately. B-But I'm glad to h-help whenever I can," she said meekly.

"Oh yeah, _dog -breath_ and bug boy are supposed to be taking the exams this time around, eh? I heard Ino talking about it with Shikamaru the other day. So what about you, Hinata-chan? Why aren't you going to be in the exam?"

The Hyuga's eyes widened painfully, and it felt as if she'd just been pierced in the heart. It really hurt to talk about it, even though she knew Naruto hadn't meant any harm.

"A-Ano, I've b-busy at home lately...f-father gives me a-assignments to do f-for the clan." she smiled weakly, staring at her feet.

The truth was her father hadn't allowed her to participate, even though she was already on Chunin-level and Kurenai had personally recommended all three of them. He had told her she was too weak and would only be a hindrance to her teammates and an embarrassment to the clan.

She had tried not to let it affect her too much, especially since Kurenai had said she'd talk to him about it and Neji had promised to teach her a new trick with the Byakugan.

Not to mention Kiba had been on the verge of marching down to the Hyuga compounds and demanding Hinata be allowed to participate, but was luckily stopped by Hinata and the rest of the team.

Still it reminded her of just how much she _hadn't _changed in her father's eyes. Despite how hard she worked, it was like there wasn't really much improvement compared to her comrades amazing feats. She hadn't even noticed her sad expression, or the fact that Naruto was now eyeing her with concern, until she felt someone gently touch her shoulder.

"-nata...? Hinata, are you ok?" she looked up with a start, seeing the boy's brows furrowed with clear confusion and worry.

"O-Oh! Yes, yes I'm fine...I guess I'm just a l-little tired from a-all that training yesterday is all..." she gave him a small reassuring smile, blushing lightly under his gaze.

She hated to hide things from him, but she didn't want him worrying about her when she was sure he had his own agenda to attend to. Speaking of which...what was he doing _here_, in a baby store, of all places?

Hesitantly, she opened her mouth to speak, fumbling over her words in embarrassment before finally managing to ask what had been on her mind, "Ano, Naruto-kun...w-what...are you doing here?" she avoided his gaze and shifted her weight to the right slightly, staring down at the various baby items in her hands.

Unknown to the heiress, Naruto flinched slightly, trying to find a good response. It had only just occurred to him how awkward this must seem, him browsing the aisles of a _baby_ store. He scratched the back of his head, glancing up at nothing in particular, "W-Well, you see...it's a funny story, really." he mumbled, laughing sheepishly.

The Hyuga blinked at him curiously, her pale face still dappled a cherry red. "Tsunade-baachancalledmeandSakura-!" he said all at once, much to the Hyuga's confusion.

"E-Eto...Gomen, Naruto-kun demo, _nani_?" she asked as politely as possible, clear bewilderment still written upon her face.

The blond sighed, inhaling a large breath as he prepared to explain, only to be interrupted by a familiar voice calling him, "Hey Naruto, I got the diapers, changing table, food, and clothes, so all we need now is the—oh! ...Hinata?"

"Eh?" Naruto turned, seeing his pink-haired teammate staring at the Hyuga in surprise.

Hinata blinked, tilting her head to the side so she could see the person standing at the end of the aisle, her expression contorting into a similar look of shock when she saw the pinkette. "S-Sakura-san!" she squeaked.

"So Sakura, did you get all the clothes and stuff?" Naruto asked, grinning casually and stepping forward with his hands placed behind his head.

"Yeah, I did. No thanks to you, by the way. You had to run off and ditch me," She huffed, shooting him a half-hearted glare.

Unknown to the squabbling pair, Hinata was still watching them, her mouth wide open and her eyes as big as saucers at the scene she was witnessing.

"A-Ano...g-gomen for interrupting," she cut in, "B-But what um, are you guys doing in a baby store?"

They both glanced back around at hearing the Hyuga's timid voice, and Naruto blinked once, before a look of realization suddenly dawned on him. "Oh yeah, I never finished telling you did I? Well," he took a deep breath and bounced on the balls of his feet, "Tsunade-baachan gave us this super important mission, see, we have to be like 'parents' and take care of the baby-chan until baa-chan can figure out where she came from!" Naruto exclaimed proudly, motioning toward the grinning baby girl in the basket who was sucking her tiny fist and staring at Hinata with curiosity.

Hinata's mouth fell open even more, and she instinctively raised a hand to cover it. Cautiously she glanced at the grinning baby girl, before looking at Sakura and Naruto, then back to the infant again. She could feel the heat of her body increasing slowly as she stared, unable to find any words that would fit the situation.

Sakura's brow furrowed slightly in concern as she studied the Hyuga heiress' suddenly clammy face, "Hinata...are you alright? You don't look so well." she stated.

"Yeah, you want Sakura-chan to give you a check-up?" Naruto piped in.

Still the flustered Hinata didn't respond, but continued to stare blankly ahead of her. Her thought processing didn't quite seem to be working at the moment... Naruto+Sakura=_**baby**_...?

"Oi! Hinata...hello?" Naruto slowly waved a hand in front of the red-faced Hyuga. "Hey Hinata...can you hear me...?"

"Aaah..." without warning, the heiress' eyes rolled backward and as the dizziness overwhelmed her, gravity soon followed.

Sakura gasped and Naruto sweat dropped, scratching the back of his head and squinting. "Well, can't say I didn't see _that_ coming..." he mumbled with a sigh.

Hinata had fainted.

* * *

"Do you think Hinata'll be alright?" Sakura wondered aloud, sighing again as she held up a spoonful of mashed carrots to a certain cat-eared infant's quivering lips. She absolutely refused to eat the strained vegetable, and Sakura was getting a serious cramp from crouching on the floor for so long.

"Yeah, probably," Naruto answered back from the living couch, where he was currently trying to assemble a crib...and failing miserably. "It's not like that's never happened before." He gave a grunt of frustration as he tried to jam to incompatible pieces together.

What was wrong with this stupid thing? It must be broken or something, because there was no way a ninja genius like _him_ should have so much trouble putting something so simple together, right? Yeah, it was _definitely_ malfunctioning parts.

"Hm...well, I guess you're right..." Sakura sighed as she managed to get half the spoon's contents into the dribbling baby's mouth, only to have the rest of it spit back out in her face. Said baby then proceeded to clap and giggle gleefully. Growling lightly under her breath, the pink-haired kunoichi stood up to grab a rag from the nearby counter to wipe her face clean with.

After running into Hinata at the baby store, where she proceeded to pass out, they had waited for her to come to before explaining the situation to a very shaky pale-eyed heiress.

She had then laughed nervously at her assumption, apologizing profusely—before being stopped by Naruto that is—and offering to help out in any way she could whenever they needed it. Of course they hadn't told her what their new charge _really_ was. That was top-secret info.

And after thanking the heiress, had said their goodbyes and parted ways. It wasn't until after all the purchases had been paid for and they were back outside did another important thought suddenly dawn on them.

Where were they going to live?

It was one thing for two comrades to share the limited space of a small one-room apartment, but when you added a baby to the equation, things suddenly turned out much differently.

They had pondered over this for some time, ruling out certain options as they tried to think up a solution. Sakura had recently been living with Ino and sharing a small two-bedroom apartment on the other side of town, but she couldn't just come home with baby and tow and expect the blond to be okay with it now could she?

Besides, Ino was the biggest gossip the Hidden Leaf Village had ever seen, and if she got wind of Sakura's predicament there wouldn't be a soul in the Fire country that didn't know about it by the end of the week. And going back home to her parents was definitely out of the question.

What would they do if she came home with a boy _and_ a baby at only eighteen-years old?

Beat her into the next New Year, that's what.

So besides their former sensei Kakashi, who was away on a top-secret mission, they were pretty much fresh out of options. Not that either of them particularly wanted to live with the perverted Jonin anyway.

He would most likely make things even more awkward by saying something embarrassing or trying to turn the whole thing into a real-life Icha Icha novel for his own amusement. And that was _not_ going to happen.

After coming to the conclusion that they needed somewhere to stay before the sun went down, they had left their newly purchased items at the store and promising to return shortly, headed straight to the Hokage tower, hoping the Godaime might be able to give them some kind of advice.

Unfortunately, they soon discovered that Tsunade was unlikely to be of any use at the moment as she was heavily drunk and chugging down her third bottle of sake when they arrived. Sakura frowned at her sensei's drunken expression while Naruto merely shook his head, huffing in annoyance.

"_Hey *hic* what are you guys *hic* doing back 'ere? I thought I... *gulp* sent 'uo to take 'are a tha lil' pro'lem..." she waved her finger drunkenly as she eyed them lazily, her cheeks already coated in a heavy shade of red._

"Yeah_, well, you forgot one tiny little detail..." Naruto scowled, arms crossed over his chest. "Where are supposed to stay exactly? My apartments a little too small for three people." _

_She frowned, though it appeared more of a childish pout, momentarily setting the half-empty bottle down on her desk to study the blond along with her pink-haired apprentice._

"_Well...whyyy can't you stay some'ere else?" she slurred impatiently._

_Sakura decided to speak up at this moment, noticing her sensei's contrary expression and sensing an argument coming on. The last thing she needed was a hung-over Tsunade breathing down her neck tomorrow._

"_There is nowhere else, Lady Tsunade-sensei..." she sighed with a shake of her short pink locks. The baby cooed complacently from her arms, studying the drunken woman with interest._

"_Then...why don't you just *hic* stay together at Naruto's *hic* 'ouse..." she suggested, blinking._

_He shot her an exasperated look. "Weren't you listening, grandma? There's not enough room there!"_

_Tsunade waved a well-manicured hand in dismissal. "I don' wanna 'ere it. Find a way to may...ke it work,"_

_Naruto growled, his jaw clenching as his fists curled up at his sides. "Listen you old hag, I don't care how much you've had to drink, but you'd better do something about this or I'll—"_

_Sakura quickly clamped a tight hand over the blonde's mouth from behind before he could finish his sentence. Naruto continued to mumble things into her hand before Sakura hissed at him to be quiet. _

"_Just shut up, Naruto...don't try to pick a fight with her when she's like this. Her strength is even deadlier...trust me." she ground out, as a bead of sweat trickled down Naruto's temple. The pink-haired kunoichi shot a wide, tight smile at the still heavily intoxicated Hokage, who tilted her head to the side curiously._

"_Hehe...well, thanks for your help Tsunade-sensei! _Weee'll_ just be going now... bye!" Sakura called hurriedly, babbling infant in one arm while her other was wrapped around Naruto's throat in a choke- hold as she dragged him backwards and out of the office._

And so they had ended up heading for Naruto's apartment, deciding to pick up some of Sakura's things from her old apartment in the morning. She would just have to settle from borrowing whatever she needed from Naruto for tonight.

After seeing the state of the apartment however, which consisted of one (messy) bedroom, a small kitchen space across from what served as the living room separated by only a medium-length bar counter, and a cubicle bathroom with only a sink, toilet and tub/shower crammed together, she had also decided that some serious cleaning was in order, along with a trip to the market to restock on food since practically everything there was expired or moldy except for several cups of instant ramen.

Settling for a less than satisfying dinner of noodles, they had quickly set everything up as much as possible. Sakura putting up the high chair and putting all the cans and jars of baby food and formula in the kitchen cabinets, while Naruto insisted he assemble the little neko's crib.

Now thirty minutes later the crib still wasn't even half completed and there was more food on the high chair, baby, and Sakura herself than in the jar or the little girl's stomach. She carried on giggling in delight though, obviously happy with her handiwork. It seemed she thought dinner time meant sticking your hands in your food and smearing everything around as much as possible.

Naruto gave a loud groan from the living room, and Sakura followed it up with her own sigh of exhaustion, both finding their assigned jobs more difficult than first expected.

"Why can't I put this thing together?" Naruto grumbled to himself, slumping down on the couch.

"Why won't you eat?" Sakura moaned, laying her head on her arms atop the baby's highchair. Seeing this as another opportunity to play, she giggled, placing both of her chubby, orange-covered hands on top of her guardian's head, and patting it playfully.

"Man, why are kids so much work?" Naruto asked no one in particular as he stared up at the ceiling through half-lidded eyes.

"Ugh...working the night-shift at the hospital is ten-times easier..." Sakura sighed heavily.

Naruto raised his head to glance at his pink-haired teammate through the space of the kitchen bar's wide, window-like opening, "Hey, Sakura-chan...you wanna switch for a little while?"

The kunoichi merely shrugged tiredly, not really in the mood to object. "Sure," Sakura nodded, slowly standing up again. "Be careful though, she's a spitter." she warned.

"Don't worry Sakura-chan, I'm a natural!" Naruto grinned, jabbing at himself with his thumb.

Sakura rolled her eyes before moving over to the couch, thankful to be sitting on a soft cushion instead of squatting on the hard tile of Naruto's kitchen floor. She raised a pink-eyebrow in question however upon seeing Naruto's...handiwork.

"Naruto," she sweat dropped. "What were you trying to _do_?"

"Put the crib together, obviously. But I think there's something wrong with those parts, they won't fit right." Sakura looked at the mess of parts sprawled across the floor, before she caught sight of a folded white piece of paper.

Picking it up to read, she carefully scanned the sheet before giving the blond, who was currently making funny faces at the giggling girl in the high chair, a pointed look. "Did you try reading the _instructions_?" she asked flatly, holding up the paper for him to see.

"Hey, it just looked like chicken scratch to me! I didn't think it'd actually help?" he countered, putting his hands out in front of him as if for defense.

"Whatever, just leave it to me. I should have it done in about thirty minutes." The kunoichi mumbled, picking up the first piece and setting it into the correct socket.

"Yeah, okay. I've got you covered on this end, Sakura-chan." Naruto assured her, picking up a jar of strained green mush which vaguely looked like spinach with a disgusted face. "Blegh! No wonder she won't touch this stuff! I wouldn't wanna eat something that looked like a cat's hairball either."

"That's the healthiest baby food on the market, and it's got all the right supplements." Sakura glared at her teammate's lack of knowledge. "So whether or not it looks appetizing, it's what she's going to have to learn to eat."

"Fine," Naruto huffed, picking up the spoon and lifting it to the baby's mouth. "Hey look, here comes the ninja spoon!"

"_Ninja spoon_?"

"Hey, it's the best thing I could think of!"

"You know, I just realized she doesn't have a name yet. I mean, I don't think Tsunade-sensei ever gave her one, and we can't just call her baby all the time...so, what do you think her new name should be?" Sakura questioned, a finger to her lips in thought.

"Something cool and original!"

"It'll have to sound feminine too, and have a meaning. Names need to have meaning." Sakura nodded solemnly.

"What about...Naruko?"

Sakura snorted, "What, you want her to turn into another you? I don't think so...maybe some kind of flower would better, you know? Like my name for example."

"Then how 'bout...Ran?"

"You mean as in 'orchid'?"

At this suggestion the would-be baby 'Ran' blew a raspberry in protest. "Sorry Naruto, but I don't think she likes it," Sakura giggled.

"Okay, then _you_ think of one smarty pants!" Naruto pouted.

"Saki?"

"Uh, doesn't that mean 'blossom' or something?"

"Yeah, it's short and cute."

"Gaah!" the baby pounded her small fists on the table with a cutely disapproving face.

"Looks like you'll have to try again, Sakura-chan." Naruto grinned. He took the green mush and mixed it into a bowl with strained pears, lifting it up to the infant's mouth once again, his face half-turned in case she decided to spit it out.

Miraculously, it went in without a problem, and he grinned as she at all the mush on the spoon. "Hey, you finally ate something!" Naruto cheered, causing Sakura to look up.

"What, are you serious?" she gaped at him.

"Yep, all it took was a little patience, Sakura-chan, and some fruit mixed in. See, I told you that you could learn some things from me."

Sakura felt a vein throbbing on her forehead and her left eye twitch, but did her best to control it. "Just...think of another name." she growled.

Naruto stared into wide, minty green eyes, and grinned. "Hey, Tsunade-baachan said she was near the woods when they found her right? So why don't we try something that means forest, like..."

"Moriko! **(2.)**" Sakura gasped, "That's perfect Naruto! We can call her Moriko,"

"Well, what do you think?" Naruto asked the grinning baby girl, who lifted her hands happily. "Alright, then you're Moriko-chan from now on."

"'Iko! 'Iko!" The newly named Moriko babbled excitedly.

* * *

"Hey!" Naruto shouted, as water dripped from his now wet hair and into his face. The sound of giggling echoed through the bathroom as Naruto attempted to bathe the bubbly baby Moriko while Sakura cleaned the food-splattered kitchen. Key word being 'attempted'.

So far, she had splashed water all over the floor and Naruto, though he had managed to wash off her face and arms. She laughed as she flailed her chubby arms in the water, watching the pink bubble bath fly into the air and land everywhere, including her nose.

She stared at the suds on her face, crossing her large eyes as she wiggled her button nose. Naruto couldn't help but laugh at this, wiping the bubbles off her face, and beginning to lather shampoo into the soft curls on her head.

Moriko smiled widely, showing off her pointy little fangs, and placing her small hands on top of Naruto's much larger one.

"You know, you're not so bad after all," he told her, still grinning.

"Unga!" she chirped, picking up the floating rubber whale toy and squeezing it in both hands, squealing in delight when water came shooting out of the blowhole.

...and hitting Naruto square in the face.

"On second thought...I take that back." he mumbled, once again wiping his dripping face.

Twenty minutes later, the blonde emerged from the bathroom soaking wet from head to toe and carrying a squeaky clean Moriko wrapped up in a fuzzy white towel, before heading to the bedroom, where Sakura had stored all of the new clothes.

He sat her on the bed with a stern face, saying "Don't move." Before going to one of the drawers and opening it to see stacks of new baby outfits neatly arranged in piles.

He pulled out what looked like a one-piece pajama outfit and held it up. It was a light green and had little stars all over it. He decided it was obviously a pair of pajamas and carried it over to the still waiting Moriko, who blinked up at him curiously. "Oh crap! I need to get you a diaper!" he exclaimed, snapping his fingers.

Rushing back over to the drawer, he managing to locate a pack of fresh diapers and opened them to see little designs of cute baby animals all over them. "Heh. Here we go," he picked the baby up and placed her down on the towel before pulling out the diaper. "Er...now how do you put this thing on?"

It took several attempts, but finally after twenty minutes and five diapers later, Naruto was able to correctly apply it. "There!" he said, holding her up to his face triumphantly. "Now let's get you changed, ok?"

Managing to slip her into her pajamas, he carried her back to the living room where the crib was located, only to see Sakura had finished cleaning the kitchen and was resting on the couch. He gaped as at the now sparkling clean kitchen in awe. "S-Sakura-chan, how'd you do that? It's amazing!"

"Yeah well it wasn't easy..." she sighed tiredly from her spot on the couch. "What's the big idea of keeping food three months past the expiration date, you idiot! It's a wonder you haven't dropped dead from food poisoning!"

"Ehehe..." he chuckled nervously. "Anyway, I finished bathing Moriko-chan." he declared, holding up the baby as she kicked her arms and legs back and forth cutely.

Sakura's face softened slightly. "Well, at least you did that right. I guess it's time for her to go to sleep now." She moved over to take her away from Naruto, only to be rewarded by a plaintive whine.

Startled, Sakura swiftly placed her back in Naruto's arms, where she immediately became quiet again. "What in the world? Why is she getting so worked up when I try to hold her?"

"I dunno Sakura-chan. She was fine a little while ago... Maybe she's just cranky." Naruto suggested, shrugging.

"Yeah, that's probably it." Sakura agreed, holding out her arms once more. Naruto gently handed the baby over, and this time she only pouted slightly. "Huh, maybe she's already become attached to you, Naruto."

"You think so?" the blond rubbed his head with a sheepish grin. "Well, we did have a pretty big adventure tonight in the bathroom, right Moriko-chan?"

Moriko merely cooed in response before snuggling more into Sakura's chest with a small yawn. "She must be pretty worn out after today." Sakura said, placing her down in her crib and covering her with a blanket.

"Yeah, I know I am."

"Well that's a first..."

"So anyway, I was just thinking...do you want to sleep in the bedroom...? 'Cause I could take the couch, i-it's no problem." Naruto scratched his reddened cheek, suddenly looking embarrassed.

"Huh? No! I couldn't ask you to do that. I'll sleep here and I can go get my futon in the morning."

"But Sakura-chan, the couch isn't as comfortable as the bed, and you need to rest. I'll be fine, so go sleep in my room." Naruto protested, gesturing toward the small hallway.

"But Naruto I—"

"No way! You're sleeping in the bed and that's final!" Naruto finished with a nod, arms crossed over his chest.

"Alright thanks," Sakura huffed, too tired to argue.

"You're welcome Sakura-chan!" he beamed brightly at her. "I think I have some extra shirts in stuff in the drawer...if you wanna borrow anything."

"Okay," she nodded, making her way down the hall.

'_Who ever thought Naruto could be such a gentleman?_' she glanced back over her shoulder to see the blond already fluffing out the couch cushion and throwing a blanket over it. '_Maybe it won't be so bad after all...' _she smiled to herself as Naruto flipped the lights off, and the apartment went quiet for the night.

* * *

**Ok, ch. 3 complete! Haha I told you it'd be awkward, hence the title for this chapter. But anyway, I guess I need to clear up a few things before next chapter, so here goes.**

**Yes, I know Kurenai only had one baby, and Asuma died before she even gave birth, but in this story she had twins, and Asuma isn't dead. Yet...I may or may not kill him *shrugs* it all depends on how the story turns out. And I don't know what the baby's actual name is in the manga, or if it even has one yet, but in this story the girl's name is Rei which can mean 'bell' or 'lovely', in this case it means both, 'lovely bell', and the boy's name is Shin, for 'true' as in loyal or sincere.**

**The baby neko's name is Moriko, though I personally find that name to be quite awkward on a girl. But it was chosen to represent the fact that she was found in the woods, since it means 'forest child'. And as you'll soon see, her neko-blood will have an effect as she continues to grow.**

**I'm thinking of doing a time-skip somewhere down the line that will eventually continue into Moriko's academy years, so stay tuned for that. **


	4. Chapter 4

**After reading all the positive response for the last two chapters, I decided to get started on the next one right away. I hope I did okay again. And in case you were wondering, Moriko is about five months old right now. There hasn't been a time-skip yet and probably won't be for at least two more chapters (it'll be a mini one though, so she'll still be a baby). Thanks again for all your support.**

**P.S. Translated baby talk will appear in italics like **_'oh!' _**while regular baby talk will appear normal like "**oh!" **If you're confused just read on and you'll see what I mean.**

**Chapter Four:**

When You Least Expect It...

* * *

Naruto rolled over lightly in his sleep, snoring as he dreamt of his two favorite things in the world...Sakura and ramen. Right now he was running through a flower field towards the girl of his dreams, who was also running towards him, holding out a big steaming bowl of piping hot noodles.

"_Sakura-chaaaan!" he called merrily._

"_Narutooo!" she smiled back at him, batting her lovely eyelashes._

_Just as they were mere centimeters apart, a giant shadow loomed overhead, causing the blond to halt in his tracks. _

_He turned around slowly, his eyes widening as he got the shock of a lifetime. There was baby Moriko in all her cuteness...almost ten times bigger, grinning down at him happily._

"_Pway patticake wit me dada!" she chirped, still grinning toothily._

"_W-What?!" Naruto exclaimed incredulously. "S-Since when did you tal—" He didn't have time to finish as she suddenly slammed both palms down on him, squishing the blond like a bug on a window shield._

"AAH!" He sat up with a start, gazing around wildly in search of the giant of a baby, only to see that he was in his apartment, safe and sound, sprawled out on his couch.

Wait...why was he sleeping on his couch again? Oh yeah, he'd given up his bed to Sakura for the night. He sighed, laying back down slowly and beginning to close his eyes again, only to open them as he heard the soft whines coming from nearby.

Propping himself up on his elbows and blinking groggily, he rubbed his eyes a few times and waited for his vision to focus. When it did, he narrowed his eyes to look at the silhouetted form of the crib, where the suspicious noise had come from.

Apparently, Moriko had been woken up by his sudden shout, and was now sitting up, frowning as she stared out through the bars of her containment cell.

Moving over quickly, he picked her up, noticing the watery look in her round teal eyes. "Uh...no, no, no, n-no! Ssshh... I-it's ok," the blond tried to calm her down, rocking her back in forth, his panic building when she began to whine louder.

He tried distracting her, making funny faces, but to no avail. Then, reaching into the crib and pulling out a fuzzy orange fox plushy— one of the many toys they had bought her earlier— he waved it in front of her face, hoping to sway her into silence. This too failed.

Her whimpering continued to grow louder, until Naruto soon had a bawling infant in his hands. As he tried desperately to soothe her, a groggy-looking kunoichi came down the hall, blinking tiredly as she stepped into the living room. "Ugh...Naruto...what's wrong now?"

Naruto turned to glance at his pink-haired teammate, looking up at the ceiling sheepishly. "Uh...I guess I kind of... had a weird dream and accidentally woke her up. Now she won't stop crying," he admitted.

Sakura gave the blond a sharp look before sighing in exasperation. "Here, give her to me." she commanded, holding out her arms.

Naruto immediately plopped the wailing baby into Sakura's waiting arms, and the kunoichi began to slowly rock her back and forth, whispering soft words in her ear and murmuring a gentle lullaby.

Naruto watched in amazement as the screaming baby gradually began to calm down, her large watery eyes blinking sleepily before snapping shut. Sakura continued to rock and sing to her for a few more minutes before stopping to see if it'd worked.

She smiled warmly as she heard the even breaths of the slumbering infant. "There," she sighed. "All better." She walked back over to the crib and gently placed Moriko down, pulling the covers up over her tiny form and placing the stuffed fox down next to her.

"Wow Sakura-chan," Naruto breathed in wonder. "How'd you do that?"

Sakura turned around to see the blond staring with wide eyes, obviously impressed. She blushed slightly, grateful for the darkness that concealed the light tint of color on her face. "W-well it's simple really," she shook off her embarrassment with a shrug. "All kunoichi have maternal instincts. A-and besides...that's how my mom a-always used to get me to go to sleep when I was scared," she replied.

The blond's eyes seemed to cloud over in thought at this, and he suddenly felt a painful lurch stir inside his chest. He'd never known his parents, and there was never anyone to comfort him whenever he was alone or scared at night, huddled under the covers in the dark.

"Yeah...? You're mom, huh?" Naruto mumbled, his voice low and gruff. Sakura blinked, turning to look at him in confusion. Why did he suddenly sound so distant...? It was then that it dawned on her and she covered her mouth with a jolt of pure horror running through her veins.

How could she be so insensitive and forget? She was so stupid!

"N-Naruto," she began shakily, "I-I'm so s-sorry, I...I just—"

"Nah, don't worry about it Sakura-chan!" he turned to her with a cheery grin, no traces of sadness or loneliness in his voice. Sakura wondered just how much Naruto hid beneath that foxy smile of his. "So...how 'bout some breakfast?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow slightly in disbelief as she looked at her grinning teammate before glancing back at an clock on the wall to see it was barely five in the morning, "Naruto, do you know what time it is?" she asked skeptically.

"Yeah, time for breakfast, right?"

She shook her head with a sigh. He truly was a knucklehead. She gave him a light smile before shrugging. "Sure, why not?" she laughed quietly.

As they sat down eating an early breakfast of –surprise, surprise—ramen (Sakura making a mental note to go grocery shopping at the earliest convenience), Naruto began a light conversation as he slurped down his second bowl of steaming hot noodles.

"Man, you were right Sakura-chan. This is harder than I thought. I don't think I'd be able to do it if you weren't here to help me," he laughed quietly.

Sakura blinked, never ceasing to be amazed by Naruto's honesty and openness towards her. She turned her head away and coughed lightly in her hand, hoping he hadn't caught the pink tinge that had settled on her cheeks briefly. "Y-yeah, I guess we do work well together." she nodded in agreement.

"By the way, don't we have to meet Yamato-sensei and Sai for training today?" Naruto pondered, squinting his eyes in his 'thinking' expression.

Startled, the kunoichi's wide mint-green eyes flew to look at the blond as her head shot up. "ACK! You're right! And we're supposed to be there in less than another hour and a half! C'mon, there's no time to waste," she declared, standing up and grabbing Naruto by the arm to pull him down the hall.

If the blond was surprised, he didn't have a chance to show it, as he felt the pinkette grab his collar in one hand while she used the other to fling open the bathroom door. She wasted no time in literally tossing him inside, the jinchuuriki skidding across the tiled floor on his stomach and hitting his head on the tub before the door was slammed shut behind him.

"You hurry up and get dressed, since you'll probably take less time. I'm gonna run down to my apartment and grab something to wear. Make sure you get Moriko ready afterwards. Be back soon!" Sakura called through the door, and he faintly heard her footsteps down the hall as she dashed out the front door.

Slowly, the blond lifted himself up on his knees, rubbing at the sore spot on his head with a low groan. "Urgh...sometimes I think Sakura-chan forgets her own strength..."

_X-o-X-o-X-o-X_

"You're what?!" the blond screeched, sitting up as she watched her roommate pack some of her things into a few overnight bags.

"I'm staying over at Naruto's apartment while I complete a potentially long-term mission. Weren't you listening the first dozen times?" Sakura sighed, not even looking back at the blond as she continued to pack.

"B-But you...you can't just up and go! Who's going to help me clean up around here, and who am I going to make fun of or argue with when I'm bored?" the blond whined, now climbing out of bed and walking over to the pinkette once she realized that she was, indeed, leaving her.

"Sorry pig, no can do. They're Tsunade-sama's orders." Sakura shrugged, already used to Ino's dramatic rants. It could be anything from a bad hair day to overcooking the crust a little too long on a microwave pizza. Some might find it amusing the first few times, but dealing with it on a daily basis could be tiring.

And Sakura, being in a rush, really was in no mood to entertain Ino's protests. "Well, why can't she just find someone else?" Ino huffed, hands on her hips now. "And why do you have to stay with Naruto? What kind of mission is this anyway?" she demanded, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

Sakura closed her eyes, waiting for the blond to calm down while she came up with a plausible explanation. She had been hoping to shower, dress, and gather her things before Ino woke up.

Only to find she had no such luck as she had been caught after showering and attempting to sneak down the hall to her bedroom wrapped only in a fluffy towel, directly across from Ino's, who'd left her door partially open, perhaps listening out for any signs of the pink-haired medic to come home during the night.

Ino wasn't a particularly heavy sleeper, nor was she necessarily a light one. Sakura guessed she had just gotten used to getting up early over the years of helping to run her family's flower shop, going in before they opened to water plants and see to it that everything was in order.

Just as her hand had touched the doorknob, the lights had been flicked on, and Sakura had immediately whirled around to see the blond standing at the end of the hall in her silky purple bathrobe, one hand on her hip as she looked at Sakura expectantly.

The pinkette had vaguely had the sensation of being a young teenager caught coming home past curfew after spending a little too long out with friends.

The sensation became stronger once Ino began bombarding her with questions about where she'd been and why she hadn't bothered to say she'd be coming home late.

Now, nearly half an hour later, Sakura was completely dressed in her usual training outfit, and Ino was lying on her bed as she continued to watch her friend pack clothes, shampoo, a hairbrush, and some other miscellaneous things she might need.

Until she'd heard Sakura say she was going to be staying at her knuckle-headed teammate's apartment indefinitely...then her attention had immediately risen.

"Look," Sakura sighed in exasperation. "You'll be fine. I'll be right across town if you need me. And besides, aren't you going on a mission in a few days? You probably won't even be around to know I'm not here." the pinkette reasoned.

"Still," Ino huffed persistently, "It's not the same. Who am I going to gossip to and help do their nails and style their hair?" she pouted.

Sakura purposely ignored this, not wanting to see her friend try and manipulate her with that pathetic little pout that hadn't worked since academy. At least not on her, since she had known Ino for far too long. She was sure she could probably pull the wool over the eyes of some poor, unsuspecting men—the dumb saps.

"Well, if all else fails you've still got Choji and Shikamaru," Sakura reminded, slinging her full pack over her shoulders.

"Pssh!" Ino snorted, "_Those_ morons, yeah right!" She looked up to see Sakura opening the bedroom window, one foot already on the ledge. "H-Hey!" she called, "Wait a minute! You still never answered my question!" Sakura gave the blond a simple shrug before hopping out the window and over the rooftop.

Ino stuck her head out after her, hair curlers still rolled tight into her long tresses, and green facial mask still spread thick, shaking a fist in the air wildly as she yelled after the pinkette, "Sakura, get back here! Sakura! _SAKURAAAA!_"

Multiple lights came on below the apartment window and angry complaints could be heard coming from around the neighborhood, as dogs howled and cats screeched in protest to the disturbance.

"Geez! What's up with all the noise?" Ino huffed. "Haven't you people ever heard of noise pollution!" she yelled before slamming the window shut again.

* * *

Naruto had just finished feeding, bathing, changing, and dressing a now fully awake baby Moriko, who stared up at him with wide teal eyes as she sucked her thumb innocently. He'd placed her back in her playpen, and was giving her the most serious face he could muster, trying to remember the look Iruka-sensei would always give him back in academy.

"Stay here while I go get ready, okay?" he questioned, looking down at the baby expectantly.

"Owa-ba!" she exclaimed, pointing a tiny finger up at her guardian and trying to mimic his serious face in an adorable manner.

Naruto headed into the bathroom and started up the shower, sighing as he took off his pajamas and stepped into the warm water. "Man, this baby business is no joke..." he muttered as he grabbed the bar of soap and began to wash.

"Who would've thought one kid could fill up a diaper like that?" he cringed; remembering the morning 'surprise' he'd found when he'd changed Moriko's diaper.

Seriously, what was _in_ those jars of baby food?

Obviously it was more than just regular fruits and vegetables... Maybe she'd be better off if he started her on an early ramen diet?

He had just picked up his bottle of shampoo and began to lather it into his hair, when he heard a familiar shout coming from the front of his apartment. "Naruto, I'm back!" he immediately recognized the voice of his pink-haired teammate and smiled.

"Okay, Sakura-chan!" he called back.

However, it appeared the pink-haired kunoichi hadn't heard him, as she continued to wander around the small apartment in search of the blond knucklehead. "...Naruto?" she blinked, walking into the living room to see Moriko in her playpen, chewing on the ear of her fox plushy and staring up at her curiously.

"Moriko?" She picked the infant up, fox and all, noting that the little girl was dressed in one of her new outfits. It was an absolutely adorable little outfit in Sakura's opinion that she'd picked out herself. A navy sailor dress with a ruffled bottom, white sailor hat and shiny black buckled shoes to go with the dress. "Well, if the baby's here, then, where's Naruto? Is he still getting dressed?" she wondered aloud.

Taking the baby, she sat on the small living room couch, frowning as she noticed for the first time how stiff it was through the rumpled blankets atop the cushions. Had Naruto really slept on this all night in favor of having his nice, warm bed to sleep in…? Which she had to admit, was surprisingly, quite cozy.

She decided maybe she could pay him back somehow, just to let him know she appreciated the gesture and his hospitality. Maybe she'd treat him to lunch later, or offer to change Moriko the next time she had a dirty diaper.

She bounced the grinning baby on her knee lightly, watching her large eyes sparkle with glee as her two unusually sharp little teeth poked out. She figured she'd play with the baby and wait for Naruto, since he apparently still needed some more time to get ready.

She didn't have to wait long, as after a few minutes, the sound of someone coming down the hall echoed in the quiet living room, and Sakura could hear a door opening as Naruto came stumbling out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist, fanning a hand to rid his vision of the steam that followed.

"Whew, I better hurry up and get ready." She heard him saying. "Don't wanna keep Sakura-chan waiting,"

It was then that she heard him closing his room door, and then the loud crashing of someone frantically scrambling around in a limited amount of space. Minutes later he emerged in his trademark orange jumpsuit, zipped open to reveal the black t-shirt he wore underneath.

She blinked up at him as he came around the corner, in the process of zipping up the jacket when he locked eyes with his pink-haired comrade, who had stopped bouncing the baby in her lap.

"Oh, hey Sakura-chan," he rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Sorry about the wait..."

Sakura stood up, taking Moriko into her arms. "It's okay, Naruto. I mean after all these years I guess I should be used to it," she replied, shrugging.

"Alright," he grinned. "Let's hurry up and get to the training grounds!" he exclaimed, rushing towards the door.

"But wait," she interrupted him, and the blond froze in place. "Did you forget we have to _take care of something_ first? We can't exactly show up toting a baby, now can we? I can only imagine the kind of snarky remarks Sai would come up with..."

"Yeah, you're right..." Naruto mumbled in agreement, rubbing the back of his head in thought. Suddenly, he remembered something, and his blue eyes seemed to sparkle brightly with excitement. "Wait! I have an idea,"

* * *

As Hinata strolled down the streets of Konoha, she couldn't help but think of her encounter with the loud blond knuckleheaded shinobi, and his pink-haired teammate.

'_I wonder if...Naruto-kun and Sakura-san m-might need help or s-someone to watch Moriko-chan from time to time?_' the Hyuga silently wondered to herself, lost in thought as she steadily made her way in the direction of her sensei's home.

She admittedly had liked the blond ninja for years now, ever since their time in the academy, but Naruto seemed as unheeding of her affections as ever, and took all her efforts to be little more than signs of mutual friendship.

She was beginning to wonder if she would ever truly benefit by holding out for Naruto. Maybe it was time she looked at other options... Kiba, for example, had a small crush on her since they had been placed on a team together, though she'd always seen him as a brotherly figure.

But maybe...it wasn't too late to explore the idea of a relationship beyond the platonic one of comrades. Of course it would have to move slowly, as she still wasn't ready to completely give up on the idea of Naruto one day accepting her feelings. Maybe her sensei could give her some advice, since she was already visiting her anyway.

Kurenai had asked her to do some babysitting and, having nothing else of particular meaning to do, Hinata had of course agreed. Watching the twins was actually relaxing for her, and they were so adorable, babbling baby talk and giggling at the simplest things.

They were both starting to crawl around, curiously exploring anything and everything they could, wearing their laid-back father out, and since Kurenai was still trying to get back into her training and maintain her shapely figure while tending to the responsibilities of motherhood, she always was grateful for any help her students could provide.

Hinata was lost in thought when she heard someone shouting out to her, and whirled around in surprise, only to see Sakura and her beloved crush approaching, Naruto waving eagerly to her while Sakura carried baby Moriko, who was beaming from ear to ear. "Hey, Hinata," Naruto called, "How's it going?"

"Oh, Naruto-kun! Sakura-san," she exclaimed, as they ran up to her. She eyed the baby, who grinned before sticking her little pink tongue out playfully. Hinata smiled sweetly in return. "And h-how are you today, Moriko-chan?" she asked the infant, taking one of the baby's tiny hands gently. The little girl cooed and laughed, obviously as bubbly as ever.

"So Hinata...question." Naruto started, "You think you'd be free to watch Moriko-chan for a while? Me and Sakura-chan have to meet up with the squad at the training field, and well, we can't really bring her, _so_..." he trailed off, looking up at her hopefully.

The Hyuga felt her heart beat a little faster. This was her chance! Naruto was asking her this favor and, maybe if she impressed him, he'd finally notice her. She swallowed a shaky breath before nodding vigorously. "Y-Yes, yes, of course Naruto-kun! I don't mind, I was going to do some b-babysitting for Kurenai-sensei today anyway. I know the t-twins will love the company."

"Awesome, thanks a bunch Hinata!" Naruto quickly slung an arm around her shoulders and pulled her towards him in a tight hug, failing to notice the Hyuga's flushed face. Sakura smiled gratefully as Naruto let the still slightly dazed Hinata go, and handed her the infant.

"Thank you Hinata, we really appreciate it. We'll meet up with you later as soon as training's over." She told the pale-eyed girl. "Be good for Hinata, ok?" she smiled at the infant, waving to her. Moriko giggled as she happily chewed the ear of her little orange fox.

Hinata waved timidly as she watched the pair walk off in the opposite direction, sighing softly to herself and looking down at the baby in her arms. Moriko looked back up at her with large teal eyes and blinked curiously. "C-Come on, Moriko-chan. L-Let's go see the twins and Kurenai-sensei."

_X-o-X-o-X_

Kurenai was slightly surprised when she opened the door to see her only female student carrying a little bundle with big teal eyes and pretty amber curls, but welcomed her in all the same. "Oh, I see you've brought someone with you today. Who's this?" she asked, going into the kitchen to prepare tea.

Her wavy black tresses were pulled back in a low ponytail and she was wearing a slightly loose-fitting gray yukata since she hadn't completely lost all the baby weight yet. She was slowly easing back into her normal shinobi routine, doing small missions that didn't require her to leave the village just so she could have some form of physical exercise. Though currently, she was still off the active-duty roster.

"H-Hello, Kurenai-sensei," she bowed lightly, "T-This is Moriko-chan. I-I'm watching her as a favor for Sakura-san and Naruto-kun. I h-hope it's alright,"

Kurenai raised an eyebrow, studying the faint line of pink across her student's cheeks before giving her a sly smile. "Oh? I wasn't aware Naruto had a baby?"

Hinata's blush intensified as she shook her head before beginning to retell the story as it was told to her by the blond-haired knucklehead himself. Kurenai nodded in understanding afterwards.

"I see... For the Hokage to personally request them must mean this little one is important in some way," she stated solemnly, before smiling softly at the little girl.

"In any case, I don't mind you having her with you, just as long as you think you'll be able to handle all three by yourself..." she went into the kitchen and poured a mug of strong-smelling herbal tea. Hinata trailed behind and stood in the kitchen doorway. "I have to warn you the twins have been rather rowdy today. They haven't napped yet and Shin might be a little bit more grumpy than usual. I hate to leave you with your hands full, but I have confidence in you." She nodded toward Hinata before taking a hearty gulp from the steaming mug.

"W-Where are they now?" Hinata asked meekly.

"In the living room with Asuma. He just got back late from a mission last night and they're really wearing him down. Poor thing hasn't slept yet," she gave a half sympathetic smile. Hinata nodded, simply turning toward said room, knowing her sensei would finish drinking her tea and tell her she was leaving before heading off.

Kurenai had agreed to help train the academy students in advanced genjutsu attacks and counter-measures for the day. Asuma, who was supposed to be resting but obviously couldn't due to the twins' rambunctious behavior, had decided to check up on his former students, Ino, Shikamaru and Choji, maybe referee a little training session with them, and spend the day catching up in general, since he hadn't spent time with them in several months.

She found the twins, in the living room with their father, just as Kurenai had said. The tired looking jonin was sprawled across the couch with his head in one hand, watching the twins wearily as they crawled all over him, babbling happily, obviously in a playful mood. Shin pulled his beard for attention, causing the man to wince slightly and remove his son's surprisingly strong grip.

"Asuma-sensei," she greeted upon entering. He looked up to see the Hyuga standing in the doorway and a relieved smile immediately lit up his tired face.

"Ah Hinata," he sighed. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" he chuckled lightly. He stood up, holding a baby under each arm, and walked toward her.

Moriko studied the two other infants curiously, suddenly looking almost shy as she pressed a little closer to Hinata. The twins, however, seemed eager to get closer to the newcomer and their faces shone with interest at the baby neko; the little girl, Rei, extending her hand as if to reach out to her.

Both were rather cute babies with contrasting appearances and personalities. Shin had inherited Kurenai's deep scarlet eyes and had Asuma's spiky brown hair, which already jutted up in small spikes on his head. Rei, on the other hand, had the same muddy brown eyes as her father, and seemed to have gotten her mother's wavy hair, which was pulled into a small ponytail.

While Rei was assertive and liked to explore, getting into just about _everything_, Shin was calmer and seemed to take time to observe his surroundings, though that didn't mean he didn't engage in his fair share of mischief as well. _Both_ babies seemed to have a knack for causing trouble, or finding it, at the very least.

"Well, who's this?" Asuma asked, studying the new baby. And Hinata found herself once again repeating the story that quickly seemed to be spreading around the village like wildfire. But it wasn't like she was gossiping, just stating what needed to be known for who needed to know it, she reasoned.

"So you've really got your hands full today, eh?" he replied, shaking his head slightly. "I wish you the best, Hinata. Taking care of two is way too much for me. But I guess that's just part of the parenting, huh?" he asked no one in particular, causing the Hyuga to smile softly at him.

"It's alright Asuma-sensei. I... I r-really don't mind at all. The t-twins are very sweet," she said reassuringly. Asuma grunted, before setting the twins down in their playpen.

"I guess Kurenai left you all the instructions you'll need then?"

"No, I was just about to though," the red-eyed woman walked in and handed Hinata a piece of paper. "I trust you'll be fine, but in case you need us, you know how to contact us."

Hinata nodded and both jonin said goodbye once more before leaving. Deciding it was a good time to formally introduce the babies to one another, she placed Moriko in the playpen as well and watched as first Rei then Shin toddled over to inspect the new infant.

She smiled, seeing that they seemed to be getting along nicely so far, but what she couldn't have known was that babies had their own ways of communicating that no one else could decipher, and what sounded like senseless babbling to grown-ups was actually a highly complex, rather secretive language all their own.

"_Hey, who are you?_" Shin blinked, tilting his head slightly. _"Do you live hewe now?"_

"_Yeah, I don't wemember ever seeing you around here befowe... 'Course we can only go where mommy or daddy takes us...so we dunno that many places._" Rei chimed, looking thoughtful.

"_Uh, I dunno...nya. I don't weally wemember whewe my mommy n' daddy awre... But my name's Moriko," _the little neko replied.

"_How come you gots such funny teeth?_" Rei asked curiously, staring intently at the little fangs poking out from under her lip.

Moriko, suddenly feeling self-conscious since she really didn't know the reason either, brought her fox up to cover her face, flushing as she snuggled into the plush toy's soft fur.

"_Rei, stop stawing_." Shin chided, making a baby scowl at his sister. Then, turning to the neko girl, he gave her a softer look. "_It's ok; you don' have ta say if you don' wanna._" He reassured her, causing the baby neko to hesitantly lower the fox chibi to cast him a shy smile.

"_Sowwy, Miko-chan," _Rei apologized softly. "_Wanna pway?_"

Her round teal eyes seemed to light up at this and Moriko considered the prospect. Playing...with other babies her own age. _"Ok!"_ she chirped brightly, beaming in a way so that her baby fangs were fully visible in a cute kittenish smile.

For most of the morning the three babies tussled and talked in their baby gibberish, quickly forming a solid bond and thoroughly enjoying each other's company. Hinata watched them for a while, busying herself by cleaning the house as she would often do to pass the time.

When it was finally naptime, she found them passed out in a heap in the playpen, sprawled across each other and napping peacefully. Shin was at the bottom of the pile with Rei and Moriko half sprawled across his back, and all three sucking one another's thumbs and holding hands.

Moriko was sucking Shin's thumb while he sucked Rei's and she sucked Moriko's, their free hands holding tightly onto one another. Hinata found the scene to be highly adorable and quietly tiptoed into the babies' nursery to get the camera Kurenai kept there in order to capture all the twins cutest moments and put them in the baby book later. Making sure the flash was off so as not to disturb the sleeping infants, she quickly took a photo.

Then, smiling to herself, she left the trio to sleep serenely.

* * *

At the training grounds, Sakura had narrowly dodged several of Sai's ink creatures, which had landed with a powerful explosion just meters from where she'd been. Skidding backwards to regain her balance, she gave her opponent a determined glare while pulling a nearby tree from the ground and spinning it around to dispel several more ink hawks that came swooping in at her.

The emotionless artist quickly switched tactics, summoning up an ink lion that charged the kunoichi with a mighty roar, swiping its paws at her and baring its fangs.

Sakura was forced to drop the tree and change tactics when she tried to swing, only to find her arms and legs held fast by ink snakes. She cursed herself for not paying enough attention, barely managing to block as the lion leapt at her, aiming for her unguarded throat.

At the last minute, one of Naruto's clones charged in and destroyed the lion with a well-aimed punch to its skull. Sakura smiled gratefully as she wiped the sweat from her brow. "Great timing Naruto!" she praised.

"I got your back, Sakura-chan!" another clone winked at her. Sai dispelled the rest of his ink creatures, and the team stopped to take a breather.

"Whew…let's take a break guys." said Sakura, walking over to sit down near a tree that _hadn't _been destroyed during their spar. She was getting better with not destroying the field every time she used super strength. She'd only take out about two dozen trees this time.

"You're tired already?" Sai blinked. "Maybe you're getting fat…"

"Shut up Sai, before I rip that smart-aleck tongue right out of your mouth!" Sakura threatened, leering at the dark-haired boy menacingly. Sai simply smiled and held his hands up in a placating manner, as if he hadn't meant any harm. Naruto snickered quietly near Sakura, always enjoying when Sai was threatened or generally pummeled by Sakura.

"C'mon guys…" their sensei began, trying to keep the delicate balance of the team. "Why don't we all call it off early today, and get some lunch?" he smiled, seeing Naruto's eyes light up and Sakura sigh in defeat. He sweat dropped, a quiet sigh of relief escaping him. Crisis diverted, for now…

_X-o-X-o-X-o-X_

Meanwhile…in a small hot spring village somewhere… a white-haired man ran through the streets cackling to himself, a pack of towel-clad women hot on his tail.

"Hahaha! Even if they're trying to pummel me to death, I gotta say this is a heck of a good way to go!" he yelled gleefully, glancing back to see the women waving fists and shouting threats. The only thing he could focus on though was the way their breasts bounced when they ran.

At the head of the pack, was the female sand ninja he'd last encountered during his previous hot spring excursion. She, along with the other females that were there with her at the time, were the only women dressed in ninja gear, as they were the only kunoichi in the mob.

"We'll get you Toad Sage… and your little books too!" Azuri Umeda, the leader screamed, pointing a finger at him. The rest of the women gave an Amazonian war-cry as they followed her lead, and Jiraiya was forced to take a sudden turn in an effort to throw them off.

The women caught up seconds after he'd disappeared into a nearby building, their feet coming to a screeching halt. "Search the area thoroughly, the pervert couldn't have gotten far!" she cried.

While the women searched, she turned to look at the building nearest her, narrowing her eyes suspiciously for a moment. She looked at the sign above the door and shook her head. "No, that's the _last_ place he'd be." she mumbled bitterly before searching elsewhere.

Inside, the toad sage breathed a sigh of relief. "Looks like I lost them…" he muttered.

"Lost who, handsome?" a feminine voice chirped. Jiraiya jumped slightly as a slender hand touched his shoulder, but then smiled politely at the middle-aged woman it belonged to.

True, he preferred women much younger than himself for his book subjects, but she didn't look too bad. A well kept woman with shoulder length hair in a somewhat curly style, and lovely eye shadow that brought out her green eyes.

"Oh, no one. Just some…unpleasant lady friends of mine. Now if you'll excuse me, I must be off." He began to walk for the door, deciding not to draw attention to himself by teleporting, in case those crazed women outside were still lurking around.

"Nonsense, doll! Sit, stay, have a drink on the house, hmm?" she fluttered her eyelashes as she led him to a seat at the bar and quickly rushed to pour him a cup of sake.

Jiraiya grinned, never one to turn down a free drink. "Well if you insist…"

* * *

By the time Naruto and Sakura left Sai and Yamato, it was late afternoon, and they decided it was time to relieve Hinata of her babysitting duties. "She said she went to Kurenai-sensei's house, right?" Naruto asked, looking up at the sky lazily, arms folded behind his head.

"Yep," Sakura nodded. "It's a good thing I went there to deliver her some medicine for morning sickness a while back. I still remember the way."

"Okay then Sakura-chan, lead the way." Naruto grinned, quickly following his pink-haired love interest to a street quiet row of residential homes.

Neither noticed three sets of eyes watching from nearby. "There they are guys! Come on, let's ambush 'em!" a young boyish voice called gleefully.

"But what do ya think they're doing down there anyways?" another boy with slightly droopy eyes and a running nose asked.

"Isn't it obvious? They're on some kind of date!" the female of the group squeaked.

Both boys looked at her in surprise and curiosity. "A…date?" they chorused.

"You guys are so clueless." She said, looking smug. "Of course I'd know _all_ about this stuff! And it's definitely a date!"

"So…what's that mean? Are we still gonna try and surprise 'em?"

"Wait, let's make this more interesting and play a prank!" the spiky-haired boy suggested with a wink.

The girl smiled devilishly and the boy looked hesitant. "Uh guys…I dunno about this…"

* * *

**Phew! Finally, another chapter done. I'm sure most people know who those three are…but what kind of prak could they be planning…? You'll have to wait and see!**

**I thought this chapter was cute and all, but it didn't really turn out like I planned it. And I had kind of a difficult time writing the baby parts, since I was trying to make them sound like infants but intelligent enough to sort of understand what was going on, along with creating their own personalities...**

**That was the challenging part. Giving them all their own identities. Hopefully they'll start to develop as the story picks up in the next few chapters. Look forward to a mini time-skip coming up in maybe another two or three chappies. It'll only be by a few years, but for now, enjoy the fun and chaos of diaper days. Lol**


End file.
